PROHIBITION OF SALE OF CIGARETTES OR TOBACCO PRODUCTS IN VENDING MACHINES
Colorado Springs City Code § 6.6.105
in effect6.6.105: PROHIBITION OF SALE OF CIGARETTES OR TOBACCO PRODUCTS IN VENDING MACHINES:
A. Definitions:
EMPLOYEE: Any operator or any person employed by him who handles any cigarettes or tobacco products dispensed through a vending machine.
OPERATOR: Any person, who by contract, agreement, or ownership takes responsibility for furnishing, installing, servicing, operating or maintaining one or more vending machines.
PERSON: Any individual, partnership, corporation, company, firm, institution, trustee, association or any public or private entity.
VENDING MACHINE: Any self-service device offered for public use which, upon insertion of money or token, or by other means, dispenses cigarettes or tobacco products.
B. Prohibition: No person shall install, keep, maintain, or permit the location, installation, keeping, maintenance or use on premises over which they have control, any vending machine for the purpose of selling or distributing cigarettes or tobacco products.
C. Impoundment:
1. The City Council hereby finds and determines that vending machines which sell or distribute cigarettes or tobacco products, are public nuisances, and any vending machine found which sells or distributes cigarettes or tobacco products shall be removed and impounded at the expense of the operator by the Police Department. Any vending machine removed under the provisions of this section shall be taken to a place designated by the Police Department for storage and maintenance. No action for the recovery of or compensation for damages to or loss from a vending machine impounded under the provisions of this Code shall be maintained against the City when the machine was found to be selling or distributing cigarettes or tobacco products.
2. Vending machines shall be removed and impounded in the place designated by the Police Department and shall not be released therefrom until the charge for removal and storage of the vending machine shall have been paid. The charge for removal and impoundment of the vending machine shall be based upon a computation of actual expenses by the City incurred in accomplishing the removal and impoundment. Schedule of the charges shall be posted for public inspection in the Office of the Police Department.
3. Whenever a vending machine is removed and impounded by the Police Department, pursuant to the provisions of this section, the Police Department shall notify the operator of the machine, as such can be ascertained, of the impoundment of the vending machine and of the operator's opportunity to request the hearing to determine the validity of the impoundment. The notice shall be sent by regular mail or shall be personally served within seventy two (72) hours of an impoundment including weekends and holidays and shall contain the following information:
a. Location of storage of the vending machine;
b. The location from which the vending machine was removed;
c. The manner in which the vending machine may be reclaimed;
d. The reason for which the vending machine was impounded;
e. A description of the vending machine which shall include when available the make, model and vending machine number, if any;
f. A statement that unless claimed within thirty (30) calendar days from the date appearing on the notice that the vending machine is subject to sale; and
g. The operator has a right to a hearing concerning the validity of the impoundment and that the operator must request a hearing in writing at the Colorado Springs Municipal Court within ten (10) days of the postmark of the notice.
4. Upon receipt of a timely written request, a hearing shall be conducted within seventy two (72) hours of the request, excluding weekends and holidays. The hearing shall be conducted by a hearing officer, which hearing officer shall be a Judge of the Municipal Court in Colorado Springs or should the Presiding Judge so designate, a Municipal Court Referee.
5. The hearing officer shall conduct the hearing in an informal manner and shall not be bound by technical rules of evidence. The hearing shall be to the legality of the removal and impoundment of the vending machine. The burden of proof shall be on the Police Department to establish by a preponderance of the evidence probable cause for the impoundment. For the purposes of this section "probable cause" shall mean a state of fact as would lead a reasonable person to believe that there was sufficient compliance with the provisions of this section with other lawful authority as to grant authority to impound the vending machine.
6. If the hearing officer determines there was cause to remove and impound the vending machine, the owner or operator may apply for return of the vending machine by paying the applicable charges. If the charge is not paid, the vending machine shall be sold or otherwise disposed of.
7. If the hearing officer determines there was no probable cause to remove and impound the vending machine, the Police Department shall release the vending machine to the owner and shall be responsible for the costs incurred in the removal and storage of the vending machine. Failure of the owner to take possession of his vending machine within forty eight (48) hours of the hearing, excluding weekends and holidays, shall render the owner liable for all subsequent storage charges.
8. The decision of the hearing officer shall be final. (Ord. 95-84; Ord. 01-42; Ord. 20-74)
Source: City of Colorado Springs, Colorado, City Code and City Charter (American Legal Publishing, codelibrary.amlegal.com)URL: https://codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/coloradospringsco/latest/coloradosprings_co/0-0-0-6896Fetched: 11/1/2026